Because behavior of Taxi companies vary from country to country and in the US from state to state with regards to legal requirements for passenger pick up. So the answer to your question will be localized at least on the country level. In addition since you live in rural area you more then likely have a mode of transportation available to you so you might just use that instead of a taxi.
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KarlsonMay 22 '13 at 15:25

@Karlson: I'm not interested in legal implications, only practicalities that I assume are universal. I've updated my question accordingly. p.s. sure, I can take other modes of transport but respectfully that's off topic, my question is specifically about taxis :)
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petemoloyMay 22 '13 at 15:31

4

Not sure there is a universal answer to this. There are local customs, practices and, yes, even regulations that affect all this. In some places, punctuality is the norm in others it is the exception, same for over-booking and reliability.
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ItaiMay 22 '13 at 15:35

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I don't particularly want to be annoying but “the service any reasonable person would expect” very much depends on where you are in the world. Even the very idea to travel alone in a car or make an appointment would sound very strange in large parts of the world (as opposed, say, to just show up a long time in advance and wait for the car to be full).
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RelaxedMay 22 '13 at 16:35

2 Answers
2

Befriend a specific taxi driver which is reliable (I think at the given time in the early morning there will be no rivals, it is more a convienience problem).

Be independent with other transportations. If you do not want or cannot afford
a car, a motorbike, a scooter: Some people I know of drive 40 km (25 miles) with
a bike. Ok, it needs 2 hours, but you know that you will arrive in time.

Drive to the city with the local railway station / airport one day before and rent an overnight stay.

In the UK there are regulatory authorities that apparently limit the number of taxis and impose quality requirements there have been a study and suggestion by the UK parliament to abolish the Quantity Control on the number of taxis available in Rural areas and otherwise, which was similarly addressed by the Office of Fair Trade.

However, there is evidence to suggest that cabbies refuse to go to the rural area and there is apparently a call for a regulation to prohibit them from doing so. And in some place like Scotland there are complain procedure to be followed when service is subpar.

So long story short complain about the situation to the local licensing authority and the taxi company or the PHV company that left you stranded. In addition it may be better to hire a cab from the city where you need to go suggesting that you will pay the fare both ways taxi going to pick you up and the regular fare once it does.

Other then that since you live in rural area it is quite likely that you have your own mode of transportation, which you could use instead of calling a cab in this case you're not reliant on a "mercy" of others to get where you need to go.

Your suggestion about the taxi from the city is good. Perhaps I could also insist on paying in advance; perhaps then I could then claim against travel insurance (at present it seems I am not covered because my journey has not started until I get in the taxi!)
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petemoloyMay 23 '13 at 10:14

While it is technically true about the regulation of taxis, most cabs in the UK aren't actually taxis - least in rural areas - and aren't subject to the same regulations. They are "private hire".
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DJClayworthMay 23 '13 at 17:42